Bye Bye to the Gazebos and the Limassols

I am glad to say that not all the climbers in the garden have been a no-show this year - I may have lost one of the passion flowers and I may have lost the bougainvillea but happily the wisteria is doing well after a shaky start.  Bassam gave me this plant - it is my Elena Zoe plant and when I first put it in it was ok to begin with and then all the leaves fell off as it went into some sort of shock.  This year it seems to have put on a a real spurt and the leaves are looking fresh and green.

I am hopeful that in years to come it will cover the wooden walkway and I will be able to look out of our bedroom window and see Elena Zoe in all her glory.  This is going to take a while though because apparently a wisteria must be between 7 and 15 years old before it will bloom and it should not be overpruned.  I haven't cut this one at all yet but I have a nasty feeling that there might not be enough sun where this one has been planted.  Time will tell but the bright green leaves are attractive in themselves.

We were off to Paphos this afternoon so not much time for gardening but I did manage to do a little dead heading and when we called in to the Veaseys to give the house its final once-over before they return later today I did dead-head Di's dahlias which seem to have benefited from the near winter weather we have experienced this week.

We are struggling a bit at pickleball for numbers as we have Jeff away for some time with visitors and Angela with a frozen shoulder, Di in the UK, Mum with a bandaged leg due to her encounter with the dishwasher, Wendy and Bill not playing and John and Jenny not returning to Cyprus this summer.  So it was really good to have Rosemarie back this week seeing if she was well enough to return if only once a week.

I was really quite sad to go down and say goodbye to my lovely godmother Janet and her partner Alan this afternoon.  Janet is 82 and before she traveled over she said that this was going to be the last time she flew, however having got here and having enjoyed a fabulous two weeks I think she is contemplating returning if she is fit and well enough but having said that she is 82 and that is no mean feat and so much can happen during the course of a year.

We were uncertain how they would feel about their accommodation - they have been staying at the Paphos Gardens which has been around for a while and has a slightly dated feel compared to some of the new ultra modern holiday establishments there are around now.  They have love being here and we have been surprised by what was on offer, there are two outdoor pools and one indoor pool and a health spa - we had no idea.  It has been ideally situated for them to wander around and walk down to the harbour and had time to do their own thing as well as catch up with us.

So here is my final photograph of Alan, Dad, Mum and Janet as we said our goodbyes.  I really hope that we will see them here again but failing that if I return for my school reunion next year I will most definitely see them then - after all Aunty Janet is an ex Sunny Hill Girl like me!